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Trump expected in court on Tuesday

Former President Donald Trump will be formally arrested and arraigned next Tuesday in his hush money case, court officials say

NEW YORK – After being indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, former President Donald Trump is expected to be arraigned in court on Tuesday, a law enforcement source has told Fox News.

Judge Juan Merchan is the trial judge presiding over the case, which stems from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's investigation into alleged hush money payments Trump made to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016. Trump is scheduled to be arraigned at 2:15 p.m. in Merchan's courtroom on the 15th floor at 100 Centre Street in New York City.

In addition to Trump's personal attorney Joe Tacopina, a second source has confirmed that Trump has made arrangements with the district attorney's legal team to surrender without handcuffs. Detectives with the DA's office will handle the arrest. Former prosecutor Peter Frankel on Trump indictment: ‘You can indict a ham sandwich’

NYC criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor Peter Frankel joined Good Day New York to discuss the news of former President Donald Trump’s indictment by a Manhattan grand jury.

Law enforcement agencies including the U.S. Secret Service, New York Police Department, FBI, New York State court officers and the DA's office will meet Friday afternoon to finalize details about the logistics and security of Trump's arrest.

President-elect Donald Trump looks on during a rally at the DeltaPlex Arena, December 9, 2016 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. (Credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

The Secret Service will determine how Trump is brought in, the source familiar said. 

Sources previously told Fox News that Bragg had requested that Trump surrender to his office Friday after the grand jury voted to indict him Thursday evening, but the Secret Service delayed his surrender. 

RELATED: Why was Trump indicted? What to expect in New York hush money case

The indictment of a current or former president of the United States is unprecedented in American history. The criminal charges against Trump come after a years-long investigation into a $130,000 payment to Daniels and another $150,000 payment to former Playboy model Karen McDougal, allegedly to keep them quiet about alleged sexual liaisons they had with Trump during his first campaign for the presidency. Trump has denied the affairs and any wrongdoing. Trump indictment: What can we expect with security?

The NYPD is ramping up security in the aftermath of the indictment of former President Donald Trump. Barricades went up and police presence increased around the Manhattan district attorney’s office.

Those payments had been investigated by the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York and by the Federal Election Commission.

Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York opted out of charging Trump related to the Daniels payment in 2019, even as his then-attorney Michael Cohen implicated him as part of his plea deal on campaign finance violations. The Federal Election Commission also tossed its investigation into the matter in 2021.

"This evening we contacted Mr. Trump’s attorney to coordinate his surrender to the Manhattan D.A.’s Office for arraignment on a Supreme Court indictment, which remains under seal," a spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney's Office said in a statement Thursday. "Guidance will be provided when the arraignment date is selected."

RELATED: Can Donald Trump still run for president despite indictment?

Trump reacted by slamming Bragg for his "obsession" with trying to "get Trump," while warning the move to charge a former president of the United States will "backfire." Trump attorney on Manhattan indictment: Political prosecution hes ready to fight

Donald Trump’s New York attorney Joe Tacopina on Good Day New York reacted to the news of the indictment, which was the first against a former U.S. president, and discussed when Trump may surrender.

"This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history," Trump said in a statement. "From the time I came down the golden escalator at Trump Tower, and even before I was sworn in as your President of the United States, the Radical Left Democrats- the enemy of the hard-working men and women of this Country- have been engaged in a Witch-Hunt to destroy the Make America Great Again movement."

The investigation into Trump was opened in 2019 by then-Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance. The probe was focused on possible bank, insurance and tax fraud. The case initially involved financial dealings of Trump’s Manhattan properties, including his flagship Fifth Avenue building, Trump Tower, and the valuation of his 213-acre estate Seven Springs in Westchester.

Last year, the investigation led to tax fraud charges against The Trump Organization and its finance chief Allen Weisselberg.

Fox News' Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

Find more updates on this story at FOXNews.com.

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Politics

Korean man arrested over $50M crypto-to-gold laundering scheme

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Korean man arrested over M crypto-to-gold laundering scheme

Korean man arrested over M crypto-to-gold laundering scheme

Thai police have arrested a South Korean man accused of helping a call center gang launder over $50 million in crypto into gold.

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Environment

5 ways I use my Chinese electric mini-excavator that I didn’t expect

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5 ways I use my Chinese electric mini-excavator that I didn’t expect

When I first got my hands on a Chinese electric mini-excavator, I thought it would be a fun little machine for digging a few holes and moving some dirt around. What I didn’t expect was just how useful and versatile it would become – and how often I’d reach for it for jobs that I never initially planned on tackling with a compact electric digger.

As I’ve watched all the fun reporting on new electric excavators, I’ve looked on in envy at what the current state of the art is… if you’ve got a quarter million bucks burning a hole in your hefty pocket. They are amazing machines, but I feel like the kid sitting outside of the sandbox and looking in, never able to play with the toys myself. But as it turns out, as long as you don’t need a massive machine, a mini-electric excavator wound up offering me many of the same benefits.

These battery-powered machines are cleaner, quieter, and cheaper to run than their diesel counterparts, which is great. That’s exactly why I started with NESHER in the first place. But what really surprised me was how many odd jobs around my parents’ acreage my little NX2500 excavator managed to take over. Here are five unexpected ways I’ve been using my Chinese electric mini-excavator.

1. Trench digging for irrigation

This was actually one of the first “off-script” jobs I tackled. My parents needed to run some irrigation lines through their property for a new garden setup, and while I originally planned to help my dad out the old-fashioned way (with a trenching shovel and a lot of sweat), I had my first mini-excavator delivered only a month ahead of time, and the timing couldn’t have been more perfect.

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I figured, “Why not?” and before I knew it, I was carving clean, even trenches in a fraction of the time. What would’ve taken an entire weekend by hand was done in about an hour or two, and with zero back pain. It’s a perfect example of how machines like this can turn exhausting, sweaty work into something you actually enjoy.

That picture was taken only part way through… that trench kept going to more planters further out!

Ever since I hurt my back a few years ago, a part of my rude welcome to how the mid-30s feels quite different from the mid-20s, I’ve been a little more aware of the kind of stress I put on my body. While I’m still quick to grab a shovel when I need one, the thought of hand trenching all day with a shovel versus an hour in the operator’s chair was a no-brainer.

2. Tree planting made way easier

Planting one tree is no big deal. Planting 10? Or 20? That’s starting to become a project. Planting 50? That’s a whole day with a shovel – or just a couple of hours with the mini-excavator.

The machine makes short work of digging perfect-sized holes, whether you’re dropping in fruit trees, palms, or trying to reforest a bare section of land.

Digging a hole and dropping the spoils on the sled

In the beginning, there was some trial and error, but I’ve learned that you can fine-tune your technique to get the hole shape just right, so the trees don’t settle awkwardly or too deeply. It’s still manual labor in a sense, since those joysticks don’t work themselves, but it’s a lot less manual than working the shovel all day!

I also found that I can use a simple yard sled to load the spoils onto, then use the UTV to drag it away to the spoil pile elsewhere on the property. If you don’t have a dump truck or mini-truck around, a yard sled is a cool little way to move heavy things easily by dragging them around.

3. Mulch moving machine

I hadn’t originally planned on using the excavator for this one, but I had a big pile of mulch that needed to get loaded into the back of my mini-truck to bring over to a planting area. Instead of shoveling it by hand or using buckets, I figured I’d see how the excavator would handle scooping and dropping. And it worked beautifully.

Is it a perfect loader bucket? Not really. But it does save a lot of time and effort compared to doing it by hand. For loose materials like mulch, compost, or even sandy soil, it’s a no-brainer.

Wild that all three of these machines are electric! We’re living in the future…

I still generally prefer to go with one of my loaders for bulk material like this, but in a pinch, the excavator can move 4-5x the amount I can per shovelfull, and each pass is a heck of a lot less exhausting on me!

4. Grading around trees for a shipping container pad

Here’s one I definitely didn’t expect to work so well. I had an area near some trees where I wanted to drop a shipping container. The ground was a mess – uneven, root-covered, and just generally not flat enough for the container to sit level.

I figured I’d give the excavator a shot at scraping and grading the area flat, and with a little finesse, it worked surprisingly well. It took some careful passes, and I wouldn’t call it laser-level precision, but it was more than good enough to get the container settled evenly and safely.

I’ve since put a second container next to it and built a roof structure between them, so now I have a 40×10-foot (12×3-meter) covered parking area between two shipping containers. I’d say it worked quite well!

5. Hoisting and lifting logs (and other heavy stuff)

Now this one’s a bit outside the box – and outside the manual. These machines aren’t really designed for lifting heavy objects the way a larger excavator or crane is, but they’re surprisingly capable if you’re smart about it.

I’ve hoisted several hundred pounds with mine, like awkward loads or cut log sections. A lifting strap slung over the bucket makes it easy to mount weird-shaped things, and you just have to be careful about swinging around too quickly.

I added a manual thumb attachment, and that proved to be a real game-changer. I can now pick up logs and branches, spin them around, and drop them into the bed of the mini-truck like a tiny mobile crane. Again, one or two logs are easy enough to toss by hand. But when a tree or two comes down after a storm and there are 20 or 30 logs, my back is going to thank me for not trying to toss each one by hand.

Final thoughts

It’s easy to write off these Chinese electric mini-excavators as toys or underpowered knock-offs. But after putting on real-world use for everything from planting trees to loading mulch and lifting logs, I can say they’ve proven themselves. No, they won’t replace a full-size backhoe or dozer, but they’re not trying to. These things are for the small jobs – the ones that wear you out if you try to do them by hand and don’t justify calling in a pro crew. They’re for the homesteaders, not the contractors.

Add in the fact that they’re electric – so you can run them in a garage or barn without worrying about fumes –and you’ve got a pretty compelling machine for landowners, landscapers, hobby farmers, or anyone who wants a quiet, capable, compact helper.

They aren’t without their downsides. Run times are only between 4-6 hours, and the roughly 1 mph (0.6 km/h) walking speed is excruciatingly slow when you need to travel to the farther flung areas of the property. But at least they’re relatively quiet and vibration-free, not to mention emission-free, for that long traverse!

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UK

Three people in a life-threatening condition after ‘arson attack’ at restaurant

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Three people in a life-threatening condition after 'arson attack' at restaurant

Three people are in a life-threatening condition after a suspected arson attack at a restaurant in Ilford, say police.

Five people – three women and two men – were injured in the fire, which broke out shortly after 9pm on Friday at Indian Aroma on Woodford Avenue, Gants Hill.

No arrests have been made.

Hospital porter Edward Thawe, 43, went to help with his son after hearing screams from his nearby home.

Woodford Avenue from above. Pic: UK News and Pictures
Image:
Woodford Avenue from above. Pic: UK News and Pictures

He described the scene as “horrible” and “more than scary and the sort of thing that you don’t want to look at twice”.

He said: “I heard screaming and people saying they had called the police.”

He said he saw a woman and a severely burned man who may have been customers.

More on Metropolitan Police

He said the man’s “whole body was burnt”, including his shirt, but he was still wearing his trousers.

After being treated at the scene by paramedics from the London Ambulance Service, the victims were taken to hospital.

Indian Aroma in Ilford after the fire. Pic: UK News and Pictures
Image:
Indian Aroma in Ilford after the fire. Pic: UK News and Pictures

Nine others were able to get out beforehand, London Fire Brigade (LFB) said in a statement.

“The brigade’s control officers received seven calls about the fire and mobilised crews from Ilford, Hainault, Leytonstone and Woodford fire stations to the scene. The fire was extinguished by 10.32pm,” said an LFB spokesperson.

“We understand this incident will cause concern within the community. My team of specialist detectives are working at speed to piece the incident together,” said Detective Chief Inspector Mark Rogers, of the Met’s Central Specialist Crime North unit.

“Locals can expect to see a large police presence in the area. If you have any concerns, please speak to those officers on the ground.”

Read more from Sky News:
What Epstein’s right-hand woman says about Prince Andrew
Third arrest over sex toy throwing at women’s basketball games
Why Donald Trump believes he ‘deserves the Nobel Peace Prize’

The London Ambulance Service told Sky News: “We sent resources to the scene, including ambulance crews, an advanced paramedic, an incident response officer and paramedics from our hazardous area response team.

Indian Aroma in Ilford after the fire. Pic: UK News and Pictures
Image:
Indian Aroma in Ilford after the fire. Pic: UK News and Pictures

“We treated five people for burns and smoke inhalation. We took two patients to a major trauma centre and three others to local hospitals.”

Health secretary Wes Streeting, who is the MP for Ilford North, posted on X to thank the emergency services for their response to the fire.

He also asked his constituents to “please avoid the area for now”.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Met via 101, quoting 7559/22AUG. If you wish to remain anonymous, please speak with Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

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